A flat-plate-shaped device under test such as a semiconductor integrated circuit undergoes an electrical test to determine whether or not it is manufactured in accordance with the specification. The electrical test of this kind is performed by using an electrical connecting apparatus, such as a probe card, a probe block, a probe unit, or the like, having a plurality of probes (contactors) to be thrust to respective electrodes of the device under test. The electrical connecting apparatus of this kind is used to electrically connect the electrodes of the device under test to an electrical circuit, that is, a tester in an electrical test system.
As an example of the probe to be used in the electrical connecting apparatus of this kind is raised a blade-type probe manufactured by using a so-called photolithographic technique in which exposure of a photoresist and etching are performed, an electroforming technique in which a resulting etched part is electroplated, and so on (Patent Document 1).
Patent Document 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2004-340654
The aforementioned blade-type probe includes a seat region (attachment portion) supported on a support board such as a wiring board or a ceramic board, an arm region (arm portion) extending in a first direction from the lower end portion of the seat region, a tip end region (pedestal portion) continuing integrally into the lower side of the tip end portion of this arm region, and a probe tip region (probe tip portion) protruded downward from the lower end surface of this tip end region.
The seat region, arm region and tip end region constitute a main portion of the probe. The probe tip region has a contact portion (i.e., probe tip) protruded toward a device under test and to be thrust to an electrode of the device under test.
Such a plurality of probes are fixed to conductive portions (connection lands) of the support board at the upper end portions of their seat regions by a conductive adhesive such as solder to be formed into a probe assembly. The formed probe assembly is formed into an electrical connecting apparatus, and the electrical connecting apparatus is incorporated into an electrical test system.
The contact portion of the aforementioned conventional probe is thrust to an electrode of a device under test during a test in a state where the electrical connecting apparatus is incorporated in the electrical test system. This causes overdriving to act on each probe. The arm region of each probe is curved by elastic deformation, and the contact portion slides on the electrode of the device under test.
In the above state, power is supplied from the tester to a predetermined probe, and a signal obtained at a predetermined probe from the device under test is returned to the tester.
The aforementioned conventional probe is made of a highly resilient or toughness (pliability) metal material (i.e., tenacity metal material) such as nickel or its alloy so that its arm region is elastically deformed and curved by overdriving, and the arm region is divided into two portions consisting of paired first and second arm portions spaced from each other in a second direction by an elongated hole penetrating the arm region in the thickness direction and extending in the first direction.
Thus, electrical resistance of the conventional probe is higher than that of a conductive material such as copper. In particular, since the cross-sectional area of the two arm portions is small, electrical resistance of these arm portions is high.
In terms of the aforementioned probe having high electrical resistance, when a rectangular wave signal is supplied to the probe, rise edge and fall edge of a signal provided to the tester from the device under test via the probe are disordered. Thus, no accurate test can be performed.